Horsley: The Good Book presents a good question

By David Horsley Opinion - Amarillo Globe News

I'm not sure what "the homosexual agenda" is, but I'm probably part of it - whatever it is.

I believe that homosexuals ought to enjoy the same rights and privileges in a free society as heterosexuals.

I'm not sure what the "culture war" is (Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia referred to it in his dissent to last week's landmark decision), but - whatever it is - it's already been lost by Scalia's side.

I'm not sure what it is about Rep. Warren Chisum and his moral pronouncements that makes me want to roll my eyes, but I have to keep reminding myself that he's in the majority - for whatever that's worth - and I'm not, and neither were the six Supreme Court Justices who voted to strike down Warren Chisum's sodomy law.

Week before last, the U.S. Supreme Court said that government can't intrude into people's bedrooms and arrest citizens for giving and receiving certain types of pleasure.

It seems like a conservative idea to limit government this way, but conservatives are on the other side of the issue.

They want government to monitor the bedrooms of America.

Last week Wal-Mart announced it has added language to internal policy statements to ensure that gay employees aren't discriminated against.

I guess Wal-Mart is part of "the homosexual agenda" too.

Sooner or later - probably later - gays will get everything they want, and this is the way it should be.

Full protection against discrimination, equal rights under the law, the ability to marry each other and form durable, legal relationships - whatever I can do to hasten these things, sign me up.

As a heterosexual Christian man, I've always believed the church was on the wrong side of the gay issue.


Recently the Southern Baptist Convention announced a new initiative aimed at helping gays to convert to heterosexuality.

I'm a firm believer in the right of any homosexual to pursue all avenues to become hetero. I'm moderately skeptical that it will work, but people ought to be free to try.

Reports I've read about gays trying to become straight seem mixed. A few gay men seem to have achieved a satisfactory level of heterosexual functioning.

I don't know if they're officially hetero now, or bisexual, or just pretending.

Some have admitted that they want so badly to be straight that they've fooled themselves into believing they are.

Others, it seems, have actually managed to become heterosexuals - at least in the short run.

Here's my question: What if gays try to convert and fail?

Will the Southern Baptist Convention still be their friend?

Will it bless them for who they are, if who they are is homosexual?

Of course not.

It took the Southern Baptist Convention a hundred years to get around to apologizing for slavery.

So gays ought to look for an apology from the SBC in the year 2103 or so, give or take a few decades. I wouldn't hold my breath until the SBC gets friendly with gays.

Some of the traditional arguments against homosexuality are based in Scripture, which is why the SBC holds so tenaciously to them.

Baptists take the Bible seriously.

But what if we tried to build a case for or against slavery based on biblical statements?

I suspect we'd conclude that slavery is sanctioned by God.

Obviously, during the centuries since the Bible was written, the human community has learned a thing or two about slavery and has come to different conclusions.

We now see biblical statements about slavery within the context of ancient cultures and do not feel bound to uphold statements such as "Slaves, obey your masters."

Similarly, a modern view of homosexuality transcends the ancient cultural mind-set of biblical authors.

The real question becomes: How does a thoughtful Christian faithfully respond to Scripture and decide which ideas are divine and which merely cultural influence?

That's a question about which I'd enjoy hearing from Rep. Warren Chisum or Justice Antonin Scalia or the Southern Baptist Convention.

source: http://www.amarillonet.com/stories/070703/opi_dhorsley.shtml

Authors Bio: David Horsley

David Horsley received a Master of Divinity degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and an M.A. in English from West Texas A&M University. He served as a hospital chaplain for nine years, most of them in Houston, before moving to Amarillo with his attorney wife and their two children. He teaches at Amarillo College and writes a popular column for the Amarillo Globe-News.

source: http://www.winedalebooks.com/books/horsley.html